The New Holocaust Discoveries

With more than 42,000 ghettos and concentration camps scattered throughout Europe, almost everyone had to know what was happening.

The latest revelation about the Holocaust stuns even the scholars who thought they already knew everything about the horrific details of Germany’s program of genocide against the Jewish people.

It’s taken more than 70 years to finally know the full facts. And what is almost beyond belief is that what really happened goes far beyond what anyone could ever have imagined.

For the longest time we have spoken of the tragedy of 6 million Jews. It was a number that represented the closest approximation we could come to the victims of Hitler’s plan for a Final Solution. Those who sought to diminish the tragedy claimed 6 million was a gross exaggeration. Others went further and denied the historicity of the Holocaust itself, absurdly claiming the Jews fabricated their extermination to gain sympathy for the Zionist cause.

But now we know the truth.

The reality was much worse than whatever we imagined.

The unspeakable crime of the 20th century, more than the triumph of evil, was the sin of the “innocent” bystander.

It wasn’t just the huge killing centers whose very names – Auschwitz, Bergen-Belsen, Buchenwald, Dachau, Majdanek, Belzec, Ravensbruck, Sobibar, Treblinka – bring to mind the ghastly images by now so familiar to us. It wasn’t just the Warsaw ghetto. It wasn’t just the famous sites we’ve all by now heard of that deservedly live on in everlasting infamy.

Researchers at United States Holocaust Memorial Museum have just released documentation that astounds even the most informed scholars steeped in the previously known statistics of German atrocities. Here is some of what has now been conclusively discovered:

There were more than 42,500 Nazi ghettos and camps throughout Europe from 1933 to 1945.

There were 30,000 slave labor camps; 1,150 Jewish ghettos; 980 concentration camps; 1000 prisoner of war camps; 500 brothels filled with sex slaves; and thousands of other camps used for euthanizing the elderly and infirm, performing forced abortions, “Germanizing” prisoners or transporting victims to killing centers.

The best estimate using current information available is 15to 20 million people who died or were imprisoned in sites controlled by the Germans throughout the European continent.

Simply put, in the words of Hartmut Berghoff, Director of the German Historical Institute in Washington, “The numbers are so much higher than what we originally thought; we knew before how horrible life in the camps and ghettos was, but the actual numbers are unbelievable.”

And what makes this revelation so important is that it forces us to acknowledge a crucial truth about the Holocaust that many people have tried to ignore or to minimize – a truth that has profound contemporary significance: The unspeakable crime of the 20th century, more than the triumph of evil, was the sin of the “innocent” bystander.

For years our efforts to understand the Holocaust focused on the perpetrators. We looked for explanations for the madness of Mengele, the obsessive hatred of Hitler, the impassive cruelty of Eichmann. We sought answers to how it was possible for the criminal elements, the sadists and the mentally unbalanced to achieve the kind of power that made the mass killings feasible.

That was because we had no idea of the real extent of the horror. With more than 42,000 ghettos and concentration camps scattered throughout the length and breadth of a supposedly civilized continent, there’s no longer any way to avoid the obvious conclusion. The cultured, the educated, the enlightened, the liberal, the refined, the sophisticated, the urbane – all of them share in the shame of a world that lost its moral compass and willingly acceded to the victory of evil.

The numbers negate the possibility for collective ignorance.

“We had no idea what was happening” needs to be clearly identified as “the great lie” of the years of Nazi power. The harsh truth is that almost everyone had to know. The numbers negate the possibility for collective ignorance. And still the killings did not stop, the torture did not cease, the concentration camps were not closed, the crematoria continued their barbaric task.

The “decent” people were somehow able to rationalize their silence.

Just last year Mary Fulbrook, a distinguished scholar of German history, in “A Small Town Near Auschwitz ”wrote a richly and painfully detailed examination of those Germans who, after the war, successfully cast themselves in the role of innocent bystanders.

“These people have almost entirely escaped the familiar net of ‘perpetrators, victims and bystanders’; yet they were functionally crucial to the eventual possibility of implementing policies of mass murder. They may not have intended or wanted to contribute to this outcome; but, without their attitudes, mentalities, and actions, it would have been virtually impossible for murder on this scale to have taken place in the way that it did. The concepts of perpetrator and bystander need to be amended, expanded, rendered more complex, as our attention and focus shifts to those involved in upholding an ultimately murderous system.”

Mary Fulbrook singled out for censure those who lived near Auschwitz. But that was before we learned that Auschwitz was replicated many thousands of times over throughout the continent in ways that could not have gone unnoticed by major parts of the populace. Millions of people were witnesses to small towns like Auschwitz in their own backyards.

And so Elie Wiesel of course was right. The insight that most powerfully needs to be grasped when we reflect upon the Holocaust’s message must be that, “The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it's indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy, it's indifference. And the opposite of life is not death, it's indifference.”

That remains our greatest challenge today. If we dare to hope for the survival of civilization we had better pray that the pessimists are wrong when they claim that the only thing we learn from history is that mankind never learns from history.

About the Author

Rabbi Benjamin Blech, a frequent contributor to Aish, is a Professor of Talmud at Yeshiva University and an internationally recognized educator, religious leader, and lecturer. He is the author of 19 highly acclaimed books with combined sales of over a half million copies, A much sought after speaker, he is available as scholar in residence in your community. See his website at rabbibenjaminblech.com.

The opinions expressed in the comment section are the personal views of the commenters. Comments are moderated, so please keep it civil.

Visitor Comments: 83

(64)
No need for a shallow grave,
May 9, 2016 11:13 AM

Psychological abuse of endless repetition/amplification may lead to Indifference

I am here, because the unjust death of anyone bothers me. Unspeakable horrors inevitably follow the designation of the "other" group as an enemy. Who our so called leaders choose to decry as enemy is often quite fluid.

The deployment of nuclear weapons over Japanese civilian populations should have simply been unthinkable. But instead it was considered justified.

The firebombing of entire German cities in successive waves of aerial attacks, timed carefully to exterminate firefighters and civilian refugees, should have been unthinkable.

Rounding up Jews, Poles, Roma, and others, and imprisoning them, only to have them converted to slaves, executed, or mistreated in other ways was bad enough. But were they BURNED ALIVE? The suffering described was indeed great. But there is monumental danger in demanding a trademark for that suffering.

That danger is the consumers of media building up a tolerance for the suffering industry that the Shoah has become. Indifference will truly become the byproduct. Just imagine Israel without the American aegis of funding and military support.

The above article expands the "traditional" number of loss of life from 10 million to 20 million, while probably using redefinition as to what a "ghetto" was by including any area with a fence, a gate, and a guard post.

There is a special tragedy to the voices I keep hearing. "How could anyone ever hate us? We have NEVER done anything wrong." Aren't we all supposed to learn from history? What if all of those complicit bystanders felt... JUSTIFIED in their lack of intercession?

(63)
Lynn,
November 9, 2014 3:40 AM

This is not totally surprising. Just very very very sad. What's more sad is that there were so many lives lost and so much of this world hasn't learned anything from all of this. That is the bottom line. Remembering the dead respectfully and thinking that we are responsible for setting a better example than we have been doing. I know I can do more and so can most of us. The only way to teach some people not to hate is to show them reasons not too. Which unfortunately isn't enough sometimes..

(62)
Anonymous,
November 4, 2014 6:59 PM

Shoah Numbers

May I make a suggestion and simultaneously ask a question? We must keep the memory of the Shoah alive. I wonder if it would be appropriate to copy down the tattoo numbers of survivors and put them on lapel pins, bracelets, and other forms of jewelry so that when someone asked "what do those numbers mean?" we can tell them about the Holocaust.Where could one get them made?A few years ago I attended the State Fair of Texas in Dallas. They had a pretty good temporary museum of the Holocaust. A young lady asked her mother if Anne Frank was a real girl. "Yes, she was" I replied before the mother could think about it, "she was my cousin."The woman gave me a look that suggested I was some kind of a nut (okay, I readily admit, I AM some kind of a nut ) so I continued to speak. "Ma'am, I am a Jew. All Jews, especially my branch of Judaism, are all related. Although I cannot prove that Anne was a direct relative of mine, I can prove our relationship."That lead to a half hour of pleasant discussion among the three of us. The woman admitted that she had doubts that the Holocaust could have happened, but that her doubts were gone after discussing it with me. WHY did she have doubts? Because the Germans, in her experience, were too civilized to have permitted something like that.It just goes to show how decent people can try to deny the truth. Am Yisroel Chai

(61)
Beverly Margolis-Kurtin,
November 4, 2014 6:49 PM

And then there was nobody to help me

One of my earliest memories is of going to the movies and watching the newsreels that first showed the liberation of the concentration/death camps.I remember that even as a fairly young girl I began to scream when I saw the bodies piled up as so many logs. The faces of the dead still are seared into my mind's eye.Of course, that was before PG, PG14, etc had been mandated to "protect" the young. I am glad to this day that I saw what I saw; I will never forget, NEVER.For those who wish to deny the Holocaust, there are some people whose minds simply cannot process man's inhumanity to man; the other deniers simply want to carry on the old fears and hatreds.The European governments who have opened their arms to the Muslims are discovering the errors of their ways but in typical European fashion, try to deny that they have destroyed their own countries AGAIN.Another wave of Jew hate is rising its ugly head across Europe, into Oceania, and most horribly, here in the United States...and much of it is coming on the heels of Muslim emigrants and CHURCHES who will not separate the truth from their fiction.FREE GAZA, FREE PALESTINE. Yeah, it means exactly this: KILL ALL THE JEWS. I'm sorry, this Jew, if confronted, is not going to the sheep like the slaughter, my family and I are armed.I feel that ALL JEWS around the world need to own at least one weapon. My favorite is a shotgun because one doesn't have to be exactly on target to affect the desired effect.I support the SPLC in Alabama because they keep me and others aware of the hate groups in the United States and exactly where they are and who they hate. For some reason, Jews are always at the top of their lists.

Meir,
February 29, 2016 3:23 AM

WEAPONS FOR JEWS?? OY OY OY! It's not for the Jews...

I agree with you on all of us owning and becoming proficient with weapons. Practice, and get good with the rifle, shotgun, and pistol. You just never know - and it's not just about antisemites. We all need to learn not to be victims. Get out of the left wing box and understand that we are not ever to be perceived as victims.

(60)
LarryB,
July 24, 2014 3:27 PM

Why is this information just now being released?

I have always believed it was the bystanders fault. You cannot have leaders without followers. Doing nothing is a choice.

(59)
Morris Givner,
April 11, 2014 8:24 PM

Europe and the UN has learned nothing from World War II

The unconscionable,despicable and truth-destroying antiSemitism today in Europe and throughout the Arab and Muslim worlds speaks volumes.The world prefers ignorance to truth.They prefer to be entertained by barbarism in sports than to read about the great contributions in every field of science,the arts and the spiritual enrichment and morality by Jews for the past 4,000 years.Jews have benefited the entire Planet Earth by their incomparable gifts,labor and generosity.

(58)
hadassah,
August 29, 2013 5:08 PM

what stands out to me as a Jew are the so called bystanders....yes, how many thousands of people including the american government really knew the horrific nature of what wasw really happening.....too many to count...there is no imaginable way that we could not have known....i still weep for our people and what we have endured and thru these articles try to get a handle on this kind of evil....but cant seem to....elie wiesel and others like victor frankl who survived never fail to amaze me with their writings....how anyonw survived with any semblance of sanity is beyond comprehension...but as it is said we have a special convenant with Hashem and are very different from the rest of the world....went to yad vashem in jerusalem and couldnt get past the childrens section.....i will always weep for the suffering of our people.....

(57)
anon,
August 5, 2013 10:32 PM

Six million murders

I think that it is very important when speaking of the martyrs of the Shoah to use the word "murdered", as opposed to "perished/died/killed/lost their lives" etc. This was cold-blooded, premeditated murder, not some kind of work accident, and thus the only appropriate word is "murder" and not any of the words so often used, that makes their deaths seem to have happened by chance. And further more it's not that six million Jews were murdered. There were six million murders of individual Jews. This may sound like mere semantics, but it's not. It's very important to stress the pre-meditated nature of the Shoah, thus attribuing responsibility to the perpetrators, and to accord to each victim their individual humanity, and not to lump them all together under a global number.

Beverly Margolis-Kurtin,
November 4, 2014 7:02 PM

Agree

Murder is the only correct word to describe what happened in Europe (again) and murder is what lays in the hearts of those who would try to kill us again.

Many times, I refer to the 12 million who were murdered; we Jews were not the only ones to have been murdered..

(56)
Anonymous,
April 7, 2013 12:43 PM

one more question

My question of myself is whether I would have had the strength or the courage or whatever it took for other Jews- to not read the comments on this article.

(55)
Anonymous,
April 3, 2013 1:08 PM

One Question

My question of myself is whether I would have had the courage or strength or whatever it took for other Jews -- to live.

(54)
Anonymous,
March 12, 2013 4:55 PM

I ask myself this question

As a Jew whose family was in Canada and Latin America during the holocaust I have lived my life in light of the following question. What kind of German would I have been in the 1930's and 1940's? Would I have accepted the hatreds of my group unquestioningly? Or, would I have asked questions and held to a moral center?

My family is very Zionist, many immigrated to Israel and can be found in Netanya. I am glad to say that by and large they question Israel's policies toward the Palestinian people and they adhere to the primary Jewish teaching that humankind was created in the image of G_d. I berate my friends who de-value their neighbours as showing disrespect for their heritage and their ancestry. I do not stay silent.

(53)
sonia,
March 12, 2013 4:36 PM

There is also fear, in those who don't want to know

I have lived in Argentina all my life. In 1976, we had a military government. They copied the nazis. They had concentration camps, torture, and thousands of murders. Corpses were thrown to the sea from helicopters. Newborns were taken out from their mothers, sold for money, and the women killed. Did we know? Yes, in a way we knew that something bad was going on. We knew they killed people and disappeared people. Standing against the government was suicide. Reading unauthorized books was suicide. Listening to unauthorized musuc was suicide. A dear friend of mine disappeared, and reappeared in a hospital, terribly tortured, his fiancée dead. Going to the hospital, to see him, was suicide. We did not know to what extent there was terror. But there was also the need to survive. It is possible that many germans and polish non-jews felt against the nazis, but shut their mouths in survival.

ellie,
March 14, 2013 6:20 PM

Did you have the freedom to leave the country?

Knowing these things were happening in Argentina, why didn't you leave?

Marion,
July 2, 2013 10:36 PM

These things are happening in North Korea right now. It is suicide to leave the country if you live there. In response to Sonia - I once saw a cartoon on the web, which featured the government on a gangplank over the sea, balanced by the population, on the land. If just one person from the population became discontented enough with the government to step off the plank and quit balancing it, that wouldn't do much, but if they managed to convince enough people to step off with them, the plank would become unbalanced and the government would fall into the sea. Of course, there is no actual sea, but you can see my point, right? The caption? "The people do not know their true power". In a country such as Nazi Germany, Militant Argentina, or North Korea, the person suffering under the regime would have to decide for themselves as to whether it was a risk they were willing to take, for the sake of justice and peace and their country and world. Although, I live in New Zealand, so what do I know?

Kenan Moss,
December 27, 2013 3:20 PM

Who are you?

Have you ever heard of Tikun Olam? It is precisely because of your weltanschaung that these nightmares are still occuring. Thank God I do not belong to the I, me, myself and my selfie brigade. If the Germans, I mean those who were probably not in favour, had reacted, had answered "yes I am my brother's keeper" we would possibly not be saying Kaddish for the nameless on Yom HaShoah.

Anonymous,
April 10, 2013 5:14 PM

Thank you

Tahnk you Sonia. The issue of the "innocent bystander" is so much more complex. I too lived under military junta in Brazil as a child and knew if I lost my ID I would be shot, my parents and relatives also under other dictatorships. There is evidence that the majority of Germans actually disapproved the antijewish boycott in 1933 and the progrom in 1938 (check the gestapo records), thats why severer persecution was at first hidden (or else all JEws would have run had they known what was coming). Later the Nazis turned the tables as they knew they were losing the war and made inforamtion accessible - so as to implicate bystanders so to speak and say, you too are guilty and so must fight to the death.
Only Hashem knows the circumstances each bystander was in. But we should ask ourselves: we are bystanders of the gulag in North Korea today and yet most of us do nothing. And we do not live under dictatorship or fear of denunciation and have emails and internet. If we in the free world do not have the guts to stand up, are we in a position to blanket condemn all peoples so easily?

(52)
H.E.Brown,
March 11, 2013 12:05 AM

New Discoveries not so new.

It is so easy to look the other way when it is not happening to you. This is scary stuff, because it could happen again. God forbid! I have seen it happen in other situations.

(51)
Randall R. Kniess,
March 9, 2013 5:37 PM

In total agreement with the author.

In 1987 I was able to visit the site of the Bergen/Belsen Concentration Camp. It was a spiritual as well as an educational opportunity for me. As I passed those burial mounds I envisioned large angels upon each of them. They were swinging buckets of burning incense back and forth. I asked God, "What is this?" "These are the prayers and tears of those who lie here." When I read the words, "Never Forget!", they burned in the depths of my soul. While walking on the dirt trail between the Russian and Jewish sector I encountered where someone had drawn a swastika in the dirt. It angered me and I used my shoe to erase the image of evil. A few minutes later an older German man approached me and said, "We never knew it was happening." I looked at him and said, "I can't believe that!" How could a nation not know that something horrible was taking place. It was right there in plain site. The government had intimidated good men from doing nothing and in turn they allowed evil to triumph in killing their consciences. Hitler may have been Austrian, but Germans became his willing accomplices. Fear can force good people to hide and tremble. But the evil that became the Nazi movement was well entrenched in European society for centuries. And it still exists throughout the world. I am not Jewish, I am a Gentile. But I choose to not ignore that evil and will stand against the devils from hell who promote it and who are slowly infecting another generation into once again blaming the Jews for their problems. Satan comes to rob, steal, and destroy. And those who follow him are the enemies of the God of Abraham, Issac, and Israel. I prefer to bless Abraham and God's chosen people and to claim His covenant with Abraham to be blessed, rather than to die with no chance to live in eternity. God bless Israel and peace be unto Jerusalem.

(50)
Anonymous,
March 8, 2013 3:53 PM

the need to always be vigilent

A wonderful newsletter/website

(49)
Burtis D. Walker,
March 8, 2013 8:23 AM

It gets worse...

There are still proud exterminators walking free. Google it. There is one chess player in Australia who needs to be brought to justice, that I remember seeing online, and there are many others.

(48)
Benjamin Fisher,
March 7, 2013 4:59 PM

Anti-semitism is alive and growing.

As a Jew who has lost family in the Shoah; the article by the Rabbi once again reinforces my befief as to what really was the situation at that time.As a soldier in Germany in 1946 going to a seder, feeling the hatred of the Jew even after the defeat of Germany; I understood that there were very few who did not agree with Hitler.Today, 67 years later, nothing has changed. Anti-semitism , hatred of the Jew, is alive and growing.

P. gaetti,
March 8, 2013 12:12 PM

Tue, I am well travelled and I been to many places around the globe and all the places I been I felt wellcome apart from Germany and Austria

Tapani Luoma,
March 9, 2013 6:46 AM

We must say this.

Sorry to say, but this is true.

Anonymous,
March 11, 2013 8:58 PM

Maybe Not

I have found Germans in my age cohort (40's,50's) very sympathetic and pro-Jewish. I had always been well treated by Germans in Germany when I visited (maybe less so in Austria). In my 2nd grade class in a very Jewish neighborhood in Canada I had a teacher from Germany who requested to teach us at our school precisely because she wanted to be with Jewish children.
I studied German in Jr College (to better understand the Holocaust) and my teacher was from Stuttgart and married to a south Asian man. She had said many of her cohorts who had Nazi parents took to drugs in the 1970's and got involved in the counter-culture movement. They could not trust their parents.
On the other hand, I once traveled with an Israeli woman (a translator for Sharon who had just suffered a coma) who was educated in Germany and her father was a holocaust survivor. She said her teacher in the 1960's in Germany would say anti-Semitic things but she refused to tell her father for fear of upsetting him.
As a Canadian living in the USA I find it very odd that while the Germans have repented for their racist past and joined the rest of the Western democracies, accepting common values enjoyed by Canadians and British citizens and many Americans, most of the whites of the US south still have not repented their racist past even after losing their racist war 140 or so years ago.

(47)
Anonymous,
March 7, 2013 2:16 AM

Hindsight offers sobering reflection--for events past

I agree with the commenter who raised the question, who would people complain to? The holocaust is terrifying in its systemized genocide and magnitude of human destruction. Many families who perished probably didn't believe circumstances could get "so bad" until it was too late and impossible to flee (my friend's family was among those). While there are many remarkable tales of courage and humanity in saving innocent lives during and insane era, many were also fearful for their own lives. I like to think that I would be one of those who would risk my own life to save others. I believe I would be. But I have not had to test that theory. Unfortunately, the WW2 holocaust is not the only instance of genocide. Many societies have faced inhumane horrors. I did not quit my job and protest daily in front of the White House during Rwanda. Even if it was geographically distant, I knew it was horrible. While we keep the memories of the holocaust alive so we can hope such atrociticities are never repeated, let's not be indifferent to the fact that many peoples around the world continue to suffer at the hands of crazy regimes.

(46)
boca mom,
March 6, 2013 6:26 PM

the anti semitism was there all along

I was so fortunate that my Grandmother's entire family left Lithuania before the german regime came in. Why did they leave? anti-semitism was already strong there, they were already getting persecuted, their living was impacted. They were lucky, and they were wise to see it was nt a good place to stay. the lesson? never ignore growing anti-semitism and think it won't happen again. We must be prepared, because unfortunately there are people who will do nothing to stop it, even if they think it's wrong. I was touched by some of the strories related here of godo people who tried to help, children throwing bread and potatoes into the cattle cars because they felt compassion. A small act, but it shows they were not truly indifferent. I think a lot were very scared, and I think there were many truly evil people who systematically took control and little by little introduced more bad things, desnsitizing people. Yes, it's wrong to see murder and not stop it, but I don't know if they had any idea what they could do.

(45)
Shashi Ishai,
March 6, 2013 12:41 PM

Who could the imbivelant turn to to report these atrocities???

Don't get me wrong..I am obsessed with the Holocaust, and am scared that Hitler's ghost is alive and well, throughout the world. After reading this article and it's numbers, it will be difficult reciting the shmonei esrai today. However, if I lived in a town near Auschwitz, and I was sickened by what was happening, WHO WOULD I HAVE PROTESTED TO? THE GOVT, THE POLICE, THE PRESS...I think fear was a great proponent of resistance and revolt by the bystanders. If I open my mouth, my family and I will be in the same position...j
Yet, there are some who found the courage to overcome fear and safety. A Southern Dutch farmer was asked by an education forum to find how to teach Holocaust studies. When my brother asked him, "didn't you fear that you would be killed?" He looked at him, and w/out hesitation said, "It is what G-d would have wanted me to do..."

Ila,
March 6, 2013 6:55 PM

We will no longer be silent

Yes, it is fearful at times to stand up to what you know is right to do. KNOW THAT GOD IS WITH YOU WHEN YOU DO WHAT IS RIGHT. He will lead and guide you into ALL TRUTH. In this day and age, Israel is being attacked from every side and hardly anyone is standing up and speaking out the TRUTH on their behalf. We all must do our part to educate our children, our communities about the Holocaust and about Israel. Show videos to your children about what people went through during the holocaust, movies like Schindler's List, Anne Frank, The Hiding Place, and to find out at school what is being taught in the elementary or high school's curriculum regarding Holocaust and World Wars, etc. We can get involved in any way we can. We as parents can have an impact on our school systems, in our children's llives. Do not be afraid.

Blima,
March 7, 2013 10:00 PM

indifferent bystanders

In is well documented that if a family was found hiding, even one Jewish person, the whole down was gunned down. It is no wonder that people were afraid of their own shadows and did not respond and try to save people. the ones who did were very brave. this does not condone what they did when they were indifferent it just makes it easier to understand

(44)
Matisyahu,
March 6, 2013 12:38 PM

I feel ashamed!

I live in Germany and people like to deny or ignore the truth .... or say: "I did not know about" ... but deep inside everyone knew what was happening. Nevertheless there's jews that could escape and there's jews that survived the horrors. That's a miracle that the jewish nation is thriving once again, blessed be G-d!

Moshe,
March 8, 2013 1:50 AM

Our Culture of Firearms Fear

I am first generation in the USA, son of survivors - mother and father. I was very anti-shooting till about the time of 9/11. Since then I have taken up target shooting at the competitive level, not so much for self-defense; however, I can if I ever have to defend self and family. I truly believe that if European Jews had a culture of "shooting back" we would not be having this discussion today. The nazis and their many collaborators were basically cowards. They would nave never been able to stage pogroms and mass deportations against a well-armed Jewish resistance that knew how to defend themselves and their communities. This may be an oversimplification, and those among the gentle readers may think that Jewish scholarship could not co-exist with Jewish militarism, but you are wrong. Look at Israelis. Please, get over the firearms phobia. Learn the art and craft of good shooting safety and marksmanship.

yisrael,
May 30, 2014 7:59 AM

The Nazis enforced gun-control!

The Nazis removed all guns, rifles, etc, from all Jewish homes and then began their evil more openly. How Jews support gun control legislation is beyond me!

(43)
Becky Brittain,
March 6, 2013 12:22 PM

using USA show frequency of camps as Europeans lived it

I was told Germany was about the size of Alabama and Georgia combined.Using AL/GA map,show how many camps,etc there were.Do this for every area in USA so each of us can see just how many there were and how we could not have been unknowing if it happened here.

(42)
Anonymous,
March 6, 2013 10:00 AM

don't expect someone else to defend you

From history you should learn a lesson: get yourself a Smith & Wesson

(41)
Biju Jacob John,
March 6, 2013 9:11 AM

Indifference! I'm Equally guilty.

What a shame that we can hate each other to the extent that the numbers become just incomprehensible - 20 million? I now realise that indifference was/is not confined to just that era or group of people - after studying this article, i have realized that i am equally guilty of being indifferent to the various atrocities occurring in my own city and community. Thank you for this article, Rabbi Blech.

(40)
Roger Hurford,
March 6, 2013 7:59 AM

The consequences of Rejection...

When the human race rejects its Creator G-d there are no limits to the depths it can and will plunge to, for only He is able to transform, restore and uphold us into His image. Without Him, such depths of anguish and despair...

(39)
Anonymous,
March 6, 2013 6:09 AM

No news is bad news -- very bad news

The only thing new here is that anyone could possibly think there is anything new here. Documents, schmocuments, The full extent of the Shoah was never hidden, not for a heartbeat, only unacknowledged by those who wilfully or shamefully refused to admit what their eyes had seen, what their ears had heard and even what their own lips had spoken. Righteous gentiles as well as Jews made sure tMartin Niemoller told the world. Decades later, Yevgeny Yevtushenko told the world again, in poetry. There was never, nor has there ever been, any lack of information, evidence, documentation. All there has ever been is dhat all there was to be known could be known, should have been known, indeed had to have been universally known. Only by a determination to remain blind, deaf and without any other sense or sensibility can or indeed ever could remain a denier.

(38)
David,
March 6, 2013 4:09 AM

"all of them share in the shame of a world that lost its moral compass and willingly acceded to the victory of evil".
One who murders or enables murder hasn't "lost his moral compass", he has acted immorally AGAINST his built-in moral compass. So too he has not "acceeded to the victory of evil", he has CONTRIBUTED, nay CREATED that victory. Let us not fall into the same trap we are trying to expose by whitewashing the atrocity of the ACTIVE enablers/collaboraters of these atrocities.

(37)
and the world want us to forget as it make them feel guilty.,
March 6, 2013 3:31 AM

And the world want us to forget the past because it make the feel guilty

To day it's not only Antisemitism, it's much worse it's a Jew hate Jew.and some of these Jews R
Israel's worst enemy.

(36)
K. E. Klein,
March 6, 2013 3:05 AM

What would WE do?

The question we can all ask ourselves as Jews is what would we do? If we were the ones on the outside and someone else was being persecuted, would we have the heart and the guts to help?
What if we felt we would be putting our own families and ourselves at risk? Would we look the other way or would we be daring enough to speak out.
Do we as individuals cry out when we see others being persecuted today?

(35)
jerome,
March 6, 2013 12:58 AM

never again?

Sad thing is that the hatred is still there and growing stronger by the day in Europe. And even places and countries where there are no jews , jews are hated and despised and spoken of in a derogatory manner ! It is like a vicarious hatred transmuted from Europe and soaked up by willing anti semites
fueled by the islamists who now rabidly carry out hitler's dream.
Jews fleeing Europe and being murdered right out in the open once again brings out that same indifference from 70 years ago.
Never again has become a sad joke as islamism rears its head
and couples with original german and general european antagonism to jews.
of course the catholic church also perpetuated the hatred, there is no getting away from the fact that we are losing the media and propaganda battle to well funded and well established purveyors of the message of genocide and the induction of sharia ono the world.

(34)
Anonymous,
March 5, 2013 11:56 PM

60 MILLION IN TOTAL??

3 MILLION Polish Christians murderd in this time perid, 20 million murdered in the USSR and 60 million in toal it has been estimated world wide.. The big picture is that, and Jews were not the only target .. Poland sufferred horribly from aerial bombings random shooting no matter who you were, and starvation..Starvation was always their weapon...
The Yanks and the RUSKIS LIBERATED THE CAMPS, THEY WERE NOT INNOCENT BYSTANDERS BUT HEROES AND HEROINES.. they sacrificed their lives n battle also.. this was the time of the devols playground and the devil prevailed for manny years.. Germany was subject to horrendous conditions because of reperations levvied from World War 1... there wee many culprits, and not all actions were correct in the long run MANY BRAVE gERMANS DID HELP AT THE COST OF THEIR LIVES, AND IN EXTREME CONDITIONS.. ONE gERMAN LADY TOLD ME SOMBRELY SHE DID NOT WANT TO KNOW,, AND CLOSED HER DOORS IN THIS TIME because I sensed she was afrid for her life... never pintthe finger until you are standing in their shoes..said Hillel..!!

(33)
Francis E. Jeffery,
March 5, 2013 11:23 PM

Concentration camps by any other name are still concentration camps.

For those of us that "captured" these camps, there is no eraser of the sights and smells. I have studied this since my service in Europse as an Infantry Sgt. in WWII.
Remember the "Turnenferein" in the US in the 1930's.
We must remember the lessons that we did not learn then. The confiscation of firearms is step one for the same thing to happen in the US. The culture of acceptance is the same.

Sarah,
March 7, 2013 1:51 PM

first step

Francis E. Jeffery has recognized the first step. May we be wise enough to prevent our nation from taking it. And remember why Abraham was chosen. Teach others to know and love HaShem!

(32)
Anonymous,
March 5, 2013 11:13 PM

Well known

Its known that there were over 30000 Germans who spoke up were put here, or murdered.. Look ath the White Rose diissidents, young people who stood up.. Its hard to stand up in the face of a gun as Nazi camp survivors will tell you...
camps in Germany 33-39 for dissidents and undesirables..

(31)
Avigdor,
March 5, 2013 11:09 PM

Willful Ignorance

It's not that the general populace didn't know what was going on, they simply chose to ignore it. I don't think "simply" is fair to them, however. Germany was devastated after WWI and their economy was in shambles. Then comes along Hitler who manages to turn things around. Germany was once again properous and life under Hitler in the early years was good. When things started to go amiss the people ignored it because they were fat and happy. If it didn't affect them directly, so be it. The people became indifferent because they became self centered. What is even worse is, it is starting all over again in Germany, and all through Europe. This time it isn't Hitler but Islam. Hitler blamed the Jews for all of Germany's problems and now the Jews are being blamed for all that goes wrong in Europe. It is much easier to blame a group of people who truly are peace loving and probably won't fight back. It is sad that Germany and the rest of the so-called civilized world are so willing to go down that path of evil again.

Anonymous,
April 10, 2013 6:05 PM

Slight Correction

Avigdor, H. did not turn things round. He simply refused to pay restitution for WWI and unlike for the democratic governments, the WWI allies accepted it. He had to go to war to hide the fact that Germany was bankrupt in 39. Saw a documentary on htis just the ohter night. Everything else is acutally Nazi propaganda - every effective - it still is innocently passed on as we can see here.

(30)
Richard McClellan,
March 5, 2013 10:39 PM

Hitler was a figurehead.

Hitler has gone down in history as the most evil of the evil. I have no brief to attempt rehabilitation of Hitler.
What has always bothered me is just what is brought up by this article. Hitler could NOT have perpetrated his evil without a LOT of help. The focus on him as being the personification of evil serves to get the rest off the hook.
Yes, he likely was an evil man. But, he was ONE man and not a particularly impressive one at that.
My opinion: He was a figurehead for a large and powerful group. No need for late night paranoia here--the "military industrial comples" describes it pretty well.

(29)
Vivien Christian,
March 5, 2013 10:16 PM

To get out of Germany she married a British soldier in Berlin

I once worked in an English pub with a German lady who denied that the concentration camps and extermination camps existed. She said that she used to live near Auschwitz during the war and that there was no extermination done at that camp. She upset the customers, many of whom had been at the liberation of the camps, and I refused to work in the same bar with her ... the boss sacked her! Winnie Churchill had wanted to bring in Jews as he knew what was going on - he was outvoted by the coalition government! My father was a printer at Odhams Press and bought home 6 books of the war - they contained photo's of the concentration camps, and other retaliatory killings done by the Nazis ... all taken by the Nazis themselves!!!

(28)
Madeleine,
March 5, 2013 9:54 PM

On Preventing The Next Hitler

The headmaster of my high school, Hans Maeder was a student in Germany at the time of Hitler's rise to power. He spoke of being in a class of 100 students. Their teacher, instead of speaking fore or against Hitler, stressed the importance of questioning and independent thinking. Of these 100 students, not one became a nazi and most became active in trying to prevent Hitler and the Nazi's from taking over. Hans being one, barely escaped Germany after his own parents gave his name to the Gestapo. He spent much of the war years traveling throughout Europe attempting to wake people from their indifference, to make them aware of Hitler's plan to take over Europe, each time escaping the country just ahead of the Nazis invasion.
After the war when he came to the USA, he was finally able to found a school based on United Nation principals where students would be above all taught to question authority, and think for themselves, and not be indifferent. Imagine where the Jews might have been and what kind of world we could have now if these principals were held and taught as a universal educational value.

(27)
Anonymous,
March 5, 2013 8:43 PM

The new holocaust discoveries

I am not surprised about the new statistics sadly.
And always thought that the most horrific aspect was the number of bystanders, including "civilized" countries, one of them mine I am ashamed to say. Many of those "civilized" countries were also
purporting to practice their "Love" religion.
Whether on a big, bureaucratized level or a small individual level ,most perpetrators are enabled by bystanders. Happens at family level as well. I may be naive but to prevent the same tragedy from repeating, it is also important to understand the way in which people pretend not to notice anything, how they justify being a bystander. But we also need to remember some did try to help, e.g. an entire village in Italy which hid the Jews and pretended that they did not know any thing when the officials came to look for the Jews. What were the difference in the psychology of the Righteous Gentiles and the bystanders? Understanding this may also help to prevent the same tragedy from occurring and I hope that we are more capable of it now.

(26)
Tim Upham,
March 5, 2013 8:42 PM

It Was The Same Way During World War I

When it comes to the two great genocides associated with both World War I and World War II, the same strategy was used: Stop the war, and the massacres will stop. The Allies knew about the Armenian Genocide, when it began in 1915. The Allies knew about the Holocaust when it began, after the invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941. When both began the Allies used the same strategy for both: Stop the war, and the massacres will stop.

(25)
TK Sparkman,
March 5, 2013 8:40 PM

The hold truth is still unsaid.

The rest of the worlds country's were also conspiring with the Germans. They had to of known what was going on. It was not until the Germans intruded in their on interest, did they get involve. The Jewish holocaust helped to spike their cause, and they used it only to gain support for their interest.

(24)
M,
March 5, 2013 7:52 PM

There were no innocent bystanders. The few who spoke out were also murdered; and the whole world turned its collective back...including the United States, who unapologetically shut its doors to Jewish Immigration. Many, many could have been saved by those outside of Germany. The Holocaust is just beyond comprehension of any rational, thinking, compassionate person. But even more incomprehensible is that, even with the evidence of the Holocaust before us, anti-semitism still exists and is on the rise. How can it be? How can it be?

Faith,
March 6, 2013 2:42 AM

Holocaust

You ask "how can it be?" Aniti-semitism has ALWAYS existed, and not just with us Jews. Look at the Mexicans, Indians, Blacks, etc., etc., etc. Prejudice is not born within us - it is a taught legacy. To change people's perspectives is through education., education, education. We can only change when the populace does.

(23)
Evgeny,
March 5, 2013 7:34 PM

So so true...

It is always like that one is the murderer and another one making it happen, same thing happening today.

(22)
Edward,
March 5, 2013 7:31 PM

it makes me think

And yet we call our selfs human. Because of the red scare we needed a stronger Germany. If there wasn’t a red scare things would have been different.

(21)
bettebeegreen,
March 5, 2013 7:28 PM

Those who knew

Of course everyone knew. Where did their neighbors all go to when they suddenly left in the arms of German soldiers? No one saw?? Or the fact that German gentiles took their apartments and homes. It's ridiculous to think that there were so many who didn't know. Did no one walk by a ghetto? Did no one smell the burning flesh?

(20)
AleSandra Gabriel,
March 5, 2013 6:51 PM

Not to diminish the responsibility of the general populase at all, but we must remember that all these things happened over time.Situations became normalized by a general desensitization of nearly everyone. Times were hard and peoples main focus were on themselves. Also, there was an oppressive fear factor that prevented many people from becoming involved...they didnt want to become victims themselves. Lastly, all good acts are dependent upon a G-d contiousness, where His standard is accepted and followed as the moral compass. Without this, what is truly wrong?

Anonymous,
March 5, 2013 11:32 PM

In Germany, times were NOT hard. Germany did not suffer the depression throughout the 1930's as the US did. The German economy was doing very well.

The persecuted people suffered terrible deprivations, but the rest of Germany was doing fine. No one had anything they could blame on the Jews. Hitler resorted to blaming them for Germany losing WWI which was such a ridiculous lie it was almost unimaginable. I learned this in a history class at UWM. I had always thought Germany was suffering in a depression. It just wasn't SO!!! We really need to learn WWII history! What Germany did was beyond reprehensible. My heart goes out to those few courageous souls who put their own lives at risk to save others. War machines can make automotons of people, and governments probably know this well.

(19)
Sarah Boakes,
March 5, 2013 6:44 PM

Keep showing this, lest we forget. We do need to remember that those that new are long gone. The rest of us were either very small children or were not born. We can repent for those that did know, but also we need to remember also what Corrie Tenboom taught us . How to forgive. But please keep showing films from time to time to each generation so that they may see and know just how easy it is for hate to creep into our hearts and just what happens when it does.

(18)
Rachel,
March 5, 2013 6:16 PM

Always more research to be done

It's astonishing that this is only coming to light 70 years after Hitler came to power. It shows that Holocaust research remains an important historical scholarly pursuit.
I would add that outside Germay, many of the people in areas near concentration camps themselves were also occupied peoples and it's more understandable that they would not be in a position to attempt to help prisoners.
When I saw the film "Valkyrie" a few years ago, about a plot to kill Hitler, the main question that remained with me and was never answered was "surely, you tried your best when your country was clearly losing the war -- but why didn't you stand up against the Nazis before they plunged the world into the Second World War and murdered millions of innocents?"

(17)
Chanoch,
March 5, 2013 6:16 PM

Remember & don't forget

From how the facts have been explained, certainly the folks living in Eastern Europe have known since it happened. Perhaps an investigation of the knowledge base of Federation and the NY Times may reveal more such information. It is a heart break. May we live with Peace in God's Grace

(16)
ruth housman,
March 5, 2013 6:15 PM

Indifference

Years agi I watched The sorrow and the pity, by Ophuls, a movie that went to post War Germany and it was so clear, they "knew". IT was no secret, this mass extermination of the Jews. I found the movie chilling and deeply troubling. So this latest news doesn't really change anything except to magnify the scope of an atrocity that is beyond comprehension.
When I watched Schindler's list I asked, how could G_d stand by and let this happen? It cannot be. So my answer, perhaps slow in coming is, it's not over when, it's over, and in language there is a key. As in exist IS exit, and awake and a wake are connected. But that's too facile, and I have to put G_d on trial too. Since my middle name is Synchronicity, and I am following a totally synchronous story, as in "Divine Providence" this takes me to anoher place at the same time.
Was G_d indifferent? I think not, and I think there's a story coming that just could Illuminate Everything. And the scope of what you are saying, fells me, as it should, anytime I contemplate what happened, and even what happens still, around the world.

(15)
Ralph Loewenthal,
March 5, 2013 5:45 PM

Not just the German civilians

It was not just the indifference of the German civilians, but also the Polish, Hungarians, Austrians etc. Also the leaders of the then so called Free World, were also indifferent.
History is repeating itself in these days.

(14)
Anonymous,
March 5, 2013 5:35 PM

The abandonment of the Jews

Even more egregious is the silence and inaction of the Western world, namely the United States and England who really did not have to worry about horrific retaliation from the Nazis for their dissent. (Read "The Abandonment of the Jews") The US and England knew from the very beginning what was happening. Hitler wanted to be legitimate in the eyes of the world. Active protests, public dissemination of this knowledge, and rescue efforts would have saved millions. Europeans and (to a large extent European immigrants in the US who influenced foreign policy) were steeped in hundreds of years of anti-Semitic propaganda. Indeed, Hitler's promise to solve the "Jewish problem" was one of the reasons for his popularity and meteoric rise to power. He made it clear that the solution was annihilation early on. Other well-researched books are "Hitler's Willing Executioners", "The Last Nazi", and "Hitler's Beneficiaries". "Never again" has a hollow ring in light of the rhetoric coming from the Arab/Muslim world calling for annihiltion while the world community turns a deaf ear. The only ones who believe them is Israel. That's the lesson of history. The world will stand silently by while atrocities are committed. That lesson is not lost on Israel's enemies.

Sandi B,
March 5, 2013 10:17 PM

Our Jewish Americans and Canadians & English fought in WW11, but so many were also silent.

Western Jewish citizens of US and Canada & England weren't as vocal as they might have been and again are committing the same error in judgement. To remain popular with the majority of citizens,most of the Hollywood Jewish Actors and Actresses bunch became left wingers who couldn't care less about Israel and it's plight of warnings of annihilation by all Muslim Countries. They want to be politically correct and sided with Obama's favorite Muslims and the PA. This bunch lost all my respect in recent years....especially those who vocalized their anti Israeli and pro PA message to the world.(they know who they are and so do we)..so to keep in Obama's good grace. He would have X ed their names out so fast if they admitted to side with Israel. I wonder how they'll feel after Israel is invaded and history begins to repeat. Will they recant their lackadaisical approach to Israel and start fighting for their people....popular or not,? Maybe they'll offer to do a song and dance routine for IDF soldiers. Then I would say....Keep it you phony group of Jewish, in word only, actors.
I appreciate your honesty in your comment. Thanks. Sandi from Winnipeg, Canada.

(13)
Pat,
March 5, 2013 5:32 PM

Worse than an Atrocity

We thought it was an atrocity with the number 6 mil, but these new numbers are staggering to say the least. How was it possible for all of these yrs to have kept all of those sites hidden, is beyond mere words.

(12)
New girl,
March 5, 2013 5:31 PM

The human race did not change!

Look what is happening in the world today it worries me...what worries me more the mistakes my government in Israel does, did they learn anything from history...My trust is in HaShem only...

(11)
Anonymous,
March 5, 2013 5:31 PM

Are We So Different?

Many of the Jews of the US did not stand up against the indifference of the Roosevelt Administration, which might have save innumerable lives if they had bombed rail lines.
How long did it take to get the Jewish established interested in raising their voices for Jonathan Pollard?
My life was destroyed here in New York by corruption. I could not find a single leader, with courage and integrity, whether rabbi, whether community organizations or leader, whether politician, you name it, to stand up against injustice, corruption and dishonesty on my behalf.
Are we actually so different?
What do you think the Neviim experienced?
It is easier to keep silent and to turn away and not get involved and not take a risk.
We must work on our community and how we can become real feeling and caring human beings. Then perhaps we will be able to have an impact on others who don't have the Torah.

(10)
Bernie Isacovici,
March 5, 2013 5:23 PM

Important!

This is an important article. While the previous comment is right that the numbers will not lessen the anguish of his parents or my grandparents, in order to never forget we must remember and study what really happened. Whether or not we like it what took place is beyond my understanding of the acts of humans. My grandfather salomon Isacovici - a survivor of Auschwitz among many other camps told me - "people don't hate - nations of people hate - we the Jews don't hate." Having gone to school with Mr. Wisel - they learned to respect other humans therefore understood indifference and were the opposite of that. By understanding the numbers and the magnitude we can learn not to be indifferent. Being indifferent is how people contributed to the huge number of people murdered. We need as Mr. Wiesel states to create and admire life, art, love. By understanding that not doing so may make us indifferent we are reminded never to forget. In my grandfathers memory my goal in life is to create art, beauty, literature, and most of all love and protect all people. My grandfather is the author of "man of ashes" his memoir and autobiography shows that even after tragedy we can love and respect all humans.

(9)
JJ Swiontek,
March 5, 2013 5:22 PM

You have forgotten one catagory

"These people have almost entirely escaped the familiar net of ‘perpetrators, victims and bystanders"
You forgot 'collaborator'. They know. They want to help. They do help. Then, when it all comes crashing down, they lie and cover their involvement.
My worry is that when it happens in this country, how many will collaborate.

(8)
Samir S. halabi,
March 5, 2013 5:13 PM

'The majority of Germans knew of the genodice atrocities'

It only seems now even more plausible that the majority of the German People were in reality willing executioners of Hitler's
dedication for the total annihilation of the Jewish-people.

(7)
Linc Reed-Nickerson,
March 5, 2013 5:12 PM

If you have visited, you know...

My wife and I walked the railway line into the camp at Dachau when we visited in 2008. You could not have lived along that railway line, you could not lived in Dachau, without knowing.
We were in tears at what we saw.
Linc & Joan Reed-Nickerson

(6)
Paris Claims,
March 5, 2013 5:10 PM

holocaust denial

I visit several nationalist sites where holcaust denial is now the norm.I do not agree with these "sentiments" as I believe the holocaust is an historical fact. However, I also do not agree with criminalizing holocaust denial, it implies there is something to hide. I am also witnessing a rise in anti semitism on these sites. The reason behind this is the over representation of Jews in pushing multiculturism and mass third world immigration into western countries.

(5)
Toby Bulman Katz,
March 5, 2013 5:07 PM

Cultured Germans and uncultured Poles

"The cultured, the educated, the enlightened, the liberal, the refined, the sophisticated, the urbane – all of them share in the shame of a world that lost its moral compass and willingly acceded to the victory of evil."
Recently I have read a number of books by and about Holocaust survivors that talk about the complicity of surrounding populations, including Yaffa Eliach's masterful opus, "There Once Was a World."
Yes, "cultured" and "civlized" Germans were guilty of murder or indifference to murder, but it is also the case that primitive, uncultured, brutal, ignorant, stupid and coarse people -- Poles, Russians, Ukrainians -- willingly aided and abetted the Nazis in their murderous work. The Holocaust simply could not have occured on anything like the scale it did had it not been for the complicity of the Poles.
Even the Polish partisans in the forests who were fighting the Germans were at the same time also killing Jews.

(4)
Yehudit,
March 5, 2013 4:59 PM

Have we learned from the Holocaust?

As I read this, it struck me how reasonably one can replace the Jews in this history with "unwanted babies" (and Nazis with pro-abortionists) in our own "holocaust" of abortion. I fear the "pessimists" may be right; we have learned nothing from our own, recent, history.

Anonymous,
March 7, 2013 2:34 PM

my thoughts too

Yehudit expresses my thoughts as I read through the other comments. Almost half the children conceived in Israel are aborted, concurring with the voices of the word which say "No room for Jews here!". And in the US almost 4000 are killed daily. The locations of the nearest killing centers are proudly listed in your phone books. How many stand to say No!, how many offer help? Again it happens that one group of people are deemed ok to eliminate. The chilling thought is that the populous is being conditioned that killing is "for the best interest of society". Babies now, decenters next, then us.

(3)
Rachel Maier,
March 5, 2013 4:52 PM

I am born in a camp. I came to live in Germany, Berlin in 1991 to get the nationalitiy back because it was easier to find work... after touring through the world But, I live amongst 'them'. An aunt of a lady I worked with died. she wrote down before what should be told at her burial. In short: "Even as a child I knew a lot, the trains used to stop near our house (in Oldenburg/Oldb). Out of cattle waggons I heard people screem. We children we used to throw bread and potatoes into the narrow opening of the waggons. ..." The whole speech at her burial was about what she saw as a child. Amazing that it took such a long time to historians to find out!
---
In France where I come from the files were only opened in 2004 - so I still have to be busy with things I rather would not. Rachel Maier

(2)
Elisheva,
March 5, 2013 4:44 PM

A world of horror

Rabbi Dr.. Bernhard Rosenberg.
Thank you for addressing this very important topic.
We read about this in our Swedish newspapers the other day. I have tremendous compassion for every Jew in the world whose family suffered untold hardship and torture. You write that all should have known what was happening in their neighborhood. Yes, I am also convinced of the countries that had most camps, but FEAR for machine guns and torture prevented ordinary people from COURAGE to speak.
We in the Scandinavian countries had by 1945 barely a functioning radio. TV was not even invented then! We knew NOTHING until we heard from other travelers, that boats with about 35,000 Jews arrived in Malmö in poor condition, emaciated and sick! About Raoul Wallenberg, we heard some twenty years later. Everyone was afraid. Norway was occupied, Finland and Denmark as well .. Jews fled across the borders. News as such came only to leaders in each country.

(1)
ROSENBERG,
March 5, 2013 12:36 PM

RABBI DR. BERNHARD ROSENBERG

Rabbi Blech was one of my greatest teachers. On a personal level these numbers me nothing to me. They will not lesson the anguish of my parents Jacob and Rachel Rosenberg, of blessed memory who were in Auschwitz and Buchenwald. Their relatives except for one cousin and a half sister, WERE MURDERD by the Nazis. IT DOES NOT MATTER TO THE DEAD. Never forget. . I was born in a D.P. camp in Regensburg Germany. Rabbi Dr. Bernhard Rosenberg

My nephew is having his bar mitzvah and I am thinking of a gift. In the old days, the gift of choice was a fountain pen, then a Walkman, and today an iPod. But I want to get him something special. What do you suggest?

The Aish Rabbi Replies:

Since this event celebrates the young person becoming obligated in the commandments, the most appropriate gift is, naturally, one that gives a deeper understanding of the Jewish heritage and enables one to better perform the mitzvot! (An iPod, s/he can get anytime.)

With that in mind, my favorite gift idea is a tzedakah (charity) box. Every Jew should have a tzedakah box in his home, so he can drop in change on a regular basis. The money can then be given to support a Jewish school or institution -- in your home town or in Israel (every Jews’ “home town”). There are beautiful tzedakah boxes made of wood and silver, and you can see a selection here.

For boys, a really beautiful gift is a pair of tefillin, the black leather boxes which contain parchments of Torah verses, worn on the bicep and the head. Owning a pair of Tefillin (and wearing them!) is an important part of Jewish identity. But since they are expensive (about $400), not every Bar Mitzvah boy has a pair. To make sure you get kosher Tefillin, see here.

In 1944, the Nazis perpetrated the Children's Action in the Kovno Ghetto. That day and the next, German soldiers conducted house-to-house searches to round up all children under age 12 (and adults over 55) -- and sent them to their deaths at Fort IX. Eventually, the Germans blew up every house with grenades and dynamite, on suspicion that Jews might be in hiding in underground bunkers. They then poured gasoline over much of the former ghetto and incinerated it. Of the 37,000 Jews in Kovno before the Holocaust, less than 10 percent survived. One of the survivors was Rabbi Ephraim Oshri, who later published a stirring collection of rabbinical responsa, detailing his life-and-death decisions during the Holocaust. Also on this date, in 1937, American Jews held a massive anti-Nazi rally in New York City's Madison Square Garden.

In a letter to someone who found it difficult to study Torah, the 20th century sage the Chazon Ish wrote:

"Some people find it hard to be diligent in their Torah studies. But the difficulty persists only for a short while - if the person sincerely resolves to submerge himself in his studies. Very quickly the feelings of difficulty will go away and he will find that there is no worldly pleasure that can compare with the pleasure of studying Torah diligently."

Although actions generally have much greater impact than thoughts, thoughts may have a more serious effect in several areas.

The distance that our hands can reach is quite limited. The ears can hear from a much greater distance, and the reach of the eye is much farther yet. Thought, however, is virtually limitless in its reach. We can think of objects millions of light years away, and so we have a much greater selection of improper thoughts than of improper actions.

Thought also lacks the restraints that can deter actions. One may refrain from an improper act for fear of punishment or because of social disapproval, but the privacy of thought places it beyond these restraints.

Furthermore, thoughts create attitudes and mindsets. An improper action creates a certain amount of damage, but an improper mindset can create a multitude of improper actions. Finally, an improper mindset can numb our conscience and render us less sensitive to the effects of our actions. We therefore do not feel the guilt that would otherwise come from doing an improper act.

We may not be able to avoid the occurrence of improper impulses, but we should promptly reject them and not permit them to dwell in our mind.

Today I shall...

make special effort to avoid harboring improper thoughts.

With stories and insights,
Rabbi Twerski's new book Twerski on Machzor makes Rosh Hashanah prayers more meaningful. Click here to order...